Hydraulic fluid lift



July 17, 1934.

R. E. SHAFPELL HYDRAULIC FLUID LIFT Filed July 22, 1951 2 Sheets-Sheet lATTORNEY. 5'

July 17, 1934- R. E. SHAPPELL HYDRAULI C FLUID LIFT Filed July 2v2, 19312 Sheets-Sheet 2 A TTORNEY.

Patented July 17, 1934 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 1 Claim.

This invention relates to oil well pumping apparatus and equipment andit has particular reference to new and novel improvements in hydraulicpump jacks.

I The primary object of the invention is to accomplish through themedium of uid under pressure that which has heretofore been donemechanically and in so doing, the invention seeks to materially reducethe cost incident to the pumping of fluid from wells, yet withincreasing volume compared to the lowered cost of pumping.

The invention, through its novel arrangement of elements defines Aanimproved method of elevating fluid from wells, which method involves theuse of a fluid pressure medium separate from the uid pumped from thewell and which fluid pressure medium is circulated in such manner as tohave an effect upon the pumping equipment for elevating the fluid fromthe well,

Another object of the invention resides in the provision of an actuatingvalve and an attendant controlling valve, both of which areautomatically operated by uid under pressure and are cooperative in thesense that they are both required for the effective pumping of uid fromn the well.

Still another object of the invention resides in arranging the elementsof the combination so that the polished rod will move in a strictlyvertical line, which removes the possibility of crystallizing thepolished rod to such an extent that it may easily break and allow thesucker rod assembly to fall into the hole and which would I necessarilyrequire an expensive job. This annoying condition exists in a greatnumber of mechanical pumping jacks which are not constructed so that thepolished rod may move vertically.

Broadly, the invention includes hydraulic rams carrying a crossheadwhich is operatively connected to the polished rod and further includesa sliding valve, automatically operated by a trip which is actuated bythe movements of the rams. The invention further includes in itsarrangement a fluid pressure control valve operated in accordance withthe above mentioned valve so as to intermittently control the pressurefrom the pump during upward and downward movements of the rams. y

With the foregoing objects as paramount, the invention has particularreference to its salient features of construction and arrangement of 55parts which will become manifest as the description proceeds, taken inconnection with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of the complete assembly showing theoperating valves.

Figure 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the 60 operating valves,and

Figure 3 is a diagrammatic plan view showing the method by which uid iscirculated under pressure for actuating the pumping rams.

Continuing more in detail with the drawings, it may be rst mentionedthat the conventional mechanical pumping jack is operated by rigid vorflexible means by an engine remotely situated.

Usually, a number of these jacks are operated from the same source. Thepump lines frequent- 1y break and it has been found to be a dinicultmatter to re-connect them for further operation which causes aconsiderable loss of time.

Moreover, a conventional pumping jack employing strictly mechanicalelements is not usually constructed so that the polished 'rod may movevertically, thus crystallizing the rod and causing ultimate breakage.

The present invention, inmaking use of fluid under pressure does notrequire alinement with the source of power and may therefore beconstructed to suit any condition under which it is elected to operate,nor is there a likelihood that it .will be disconnected from the powersource and accordingly become inoperative. All of these vitallyimportant matters taken together represent the saving both in the costof operation and in the loss of time during inoperative periods.`

Accordingly, 1 designates a pair of vertically disposed ram casings inwhich the rams 2 are 90 mounted for vertical movement and are shown inFigure 1 inthe lowest position. A crosshead 3 is connected to the rainswhich, in turn engages the polished rod 4. An arm 5 is rigidly connect.ed to the crosshead 3 and is provided with a brace 95 6 so that therewill be no lateral displacement of the outer end of the arm 5 which isso constructed as to slidingly engage a vertical rod 7, to whichreference will be later made.

Again referring to the rams, a brace member 8 maintains rigidity of theram casings 1 relative to the casing head 9 and the discharge pipe 10leading from the well to a suitable storage tank at some remote pointnot herein shown.

It is of course the object of the present lnvention to verticallyreciprocate the polished rod 4 without any side movement whatsoever fromthe perpendicular. In order to do so the rams 2 must be raised andlowered with equal precision and Without any variation in movement. Inso doing, the crosshead 3 to which the polished rod 4 is securely afhxedby means of clamps 11, moves in a straight line to so move the polishedrod 4, to which the sucker rod assembly and pump valves are suspended inthe well. At each stroke of the polished rod, the fluid in the well isbroughtl to the surface and discharged.

The principal elements of the present invention, as stated in theforegoing include an actuating valve and a control valve, to be referredto in detail later and which are mounted upon the platform l2. Mountedalso upon the platform 12 at the end next to the Well are a pair ofuprights 13 and joined together by strips 14 to provide a guide for thevertically reciprocating bar 15, A spring 16 holds the bar in a verticalposition when it is reciprocated in the manner later explained. A roller17 is mounted upon the lower end of the reciprocating bar 15 and servesthe important function of operating the actuating valve within thehousing 18, through the rnedium of the trip 19. The trip 19, as apparentin Figure 1, is provided with oppositely extending arms terminating in afork 20 which is pivoted at 21 between a pair of uprights 22, which arealso mounted upon the platform or base 12. A roller 23 is likewisemounted between the upper ends of the uprights 22 so as to afford anonfrictional bearing surface against which the fork 2O impinges whenrocking motion is imparted to the trip 19 by the reciprocating movementsof the bar 15. Braces 21a jointly support the uprights 13 and theuprights 22. These braces are rigidly anchored to the base 12 at 24 asapparent in Fig- .ure 1.

A brief explanation will be given at this point concerning therelationship of the valves, the communicating pipes and the like andeach of the elements referred to at this point will be identifed byreference characters and a complete description bearing these and otherreference characters will be later given concerning the individual andcollective function of the valve.

The actuating valve housing is designated at 18 and has fluidcommunication with the adjacent valve only through the pipe 25 having acutoff valve 26 therein. However, an adjustable piston rod 27 enterseach of the valve housings 18 and 28. The pipe 29 which is seen inFigure 1 as entering the top of the valve casing 28 is the pump linethrough which the fluid pressure operating medium is first introduced inthe valves, which will be later explained. It will also be understoodthat a reservoir 3U is provided and is situated at a remote point fromthe apparatus. A pipe 31 entering the valve casing 18 communicates witha pipe 32 which latter is a return line to the reservoir 30. Alsocommunicating with the return line 32 is a pipe 33 which communicateswith a port within the controlling valve and which will be laterreferred to in the description of the valves. A pipe 34 serves as ameans by which the fluid actuating medium is introduced in the ramchambers 1 for actuating the rams 2 and it also has communication withthe control valve situated in the chamber 28. Another drainage pipe 35serves also as a fluid return line and functions to relieve pressureupon the control valve or, in other words to maintain uniformity ofpressure on both the valves so that they will be prepared to operatequickly when called upon to do so by the movements of the rams and theaction of the pump 36, shown in Figure 3.

As stated in the foregoing the brief description just concluded is givenmerely to identify the several parts relating to the valves in thehousings 18 and 28 and the description to follow will include some ofthe elements named so as to identify them withthose not hereinbeforereferred to in describing the function of the valves shown in Figure 2.With particular reference to Figure 2, it will be noted that valvehousing 18 is centrally cored to receive a piston 37, which is mountedupon the end of piston rod 27. The upper portion 38 of the valve casingis mentioned to receive the sliding valve 39 which is in control ofports, a, b, c and d within the portion 18 of the valve. It will beobserved that movement of the valve 39 will change the fluid passages byopening and closing these ports.

To operate the slidingvalve 39, a rod 40 is threadedly connected to thevalve and passes through a packing gland 41 to the exterior to beengaged by the fork 20, which as mentioned previously is an integralpart of the trip 19 and whose operation will be later explained.Referring now to the companion valve which is represented as the controlvalve, the base 42 is cored at spaced intervals to receive the pipes 33,34 and 35, whose function will be also explained later. The housing 28in the valve is machined to receive the sliding valve 43, which isconnected to the opposite end of the piston rod 27, which as previouslyexplained enters the bore in the adjacent valve casing 18 through thepacking glands 44 and 45.

The foregoing brief description of the valves is believed to besufficient, taken together with the following description of operation,to fully understand their individual and collective function in thepumping of a well.

Accordingly and in operation, it will be assumed that the rams 2 are inthe lowest position as shown in Figure 1. In this position fluid fromthe pump 36 is pumped through the line 29 to enter the chamber 46 of thecontrol valve. The valves 39 and 43 are shown in Figure 2 as being setto allow passage of fluid directly through the pipe 34 to the rams 2,since the port e in the chamber 46 is open. It will be noted also thatthe chamber 47 in the actuating valve is open to the port c, whichcommunicates with the chamber 48 in the cylinder in which the piston 37travels. Fluid from the pump 36 is passed through the pipe 29, into thechamber 46 of the control valve, through the port e and the pipe 34 intothe ram casings 1. This is clearly shown in the diagrammatic view inFigure 3. Thus pump pressure acts directly upon the rams 2, therebyraising them simultaneously and bringing the crosshead 3 to the highestposition and thereby elevating the sucker rod assembly.

When the crosshead 3 reaches its highest position, or just before, theouter end of the arm 5 will impinge the rod clamp 49. This action willbring about a vertical pull upon the rod 7, which will elevate the bar15 to such an extent that the roller 17 carried thereby will move toengage the upper arm of the trip 19. When this is done the fork 20 willbe moved on its pivot 21 to the dotted line position shown in Figure 2.

Obviously a pull is exerted upon the rod 40 which will move the slidingvalve 39 in the chamber 47 to close the port c and open the port d tothe port f through the medium of the chamber g in the valve. The port fcommunicates with the pipe 31 previously referred to and which isareturn line to the reservoir 30. The sliding valve 39 is thusmechanically forced to close the port c, open the port d for drainage,close the port b and open the port a. When the port ais opened, fluidunder pressure enters the chamber 50 and thereby actuates the piston 37to expand the chamber 50. Thus a pull is exerted upon the piston rod 27simultaneously with the introduction of fiuid under pressure into thechamber 50, thereby moving the sliding valve 43 to communicate the porte with the port h in the adjacent control valve through the medium ofthe chamber 51 in the valve 43.

From the foregoing it will be seen that pressure from the pump 36 isbypassed through the port z', which is opened when the valve 43 is movedto the dotted position shown in Figure 2, by reason of the movement ofthe piston rod 27. Fluid under directpump pressure passing into thechamber 46, port tin the pipe 35 returns to the reservoir 30 forrecirculation through the pipe 52, which communicates the reservoir 30with the pump 36.

A valve 53 is in control of Athe line 35 which functions as a releasepressure valve and is set manually to retain the pressure on theautomatic valve 43, to hold it to its seat, to operate the piston 37 onthe next stroke and also maintain equal pressure in the lines 29 and 25.

It has been stated that iiuid pump pressure is relieved by opening thechamber 46 to allow the fluid operating medium to return to thereservoir for re-circulation. At the same time, fiuid in the chamber 48of the actuating valve, forwardly of the piston 37 is forced through theport d, chamber y and out ,through the port f into the line 31, whichalso returns the fluid to the reservoir 30.

The rams being in the highest position are beginning their downwardstroke and the uid in the casings is required to be expelled.Accordingly, the fluid passes back through the ram lift line 34, asapparent in Figure 3 and enters the chamber 51 in the valve 43 thenceenters the port h and into the pipe 33, which communicates with thereturn line 32 to the reservoir 30.

From theforegoing, it is very apparent how the fluid from the pump 36enters the pipe 34 to elevate the rams. It also brings out the importantfeature of draining the actuating valve and the control valvepreparatory to the lowering action of the rams. When the rams havereturned to their lowest position, the outer end of the arm 5 impingesthe rod clamp 54, which is spaced from the clamp 49. When the clamp 54is depressed, the fork 20 urges the rod 40 inwardly as apparent inFigure 2 and thus returns the sliding valve 39 to the position shown insolid lines in Figure 2.

When this occurs, the pump pressure through line 25 fills the chamber 47of the actuating valve and fiows through the port c to the chamber 48.Fluid pressure upon the piston 37 then urges the sliding valve 43 to.the position shown in solid lines and simultaneously expels fiuid fromthe chamber 50 of the actuating valve through the port b, the chamber gand the port f into the return line 31. In this position pump pressureexerted upon the fluid in line 29 will again cause the same to flowthrough the ram lift line 34 for another operation in lifting the rams2. l

It will be understood that there is no change in the operation of thepump 36, since the latter keeps the operating fiuid in circulation,until the actuating valve is mechanically operated with timed precisionto effect the raising and lowering of the rams.

Manifestly, the construction shown and dcscribed is capable ofconsiderable modification and such modification as is considered withinthe scope and meaning of the appended claim is also considered withinthe spirit and intent of the invention.v

What is claimed is:

A pumping apparatus comprising the combination of a pair of fiuidactuated rams, a. fluid supply reservoir, a valve chamber containing asliding valve, a horizontally disposed cylinder below said valve havingcommunication with said valve chamber, a piston in said cylinder, asecond valve chamber, a sliding valve therein, a horizontallyreciprocating rod connecting said latter valve with said piston, each ofsaid valve chambers having communication with said fluid reservoir,means for pumping fluid from said reservoir through said second valvechamber to lift said rams, means operative to positively move said firstvalve upon the raising of said rams to cause the fluid pressure fromsaid pumping means to be directed against said piston to actuate saidsecond valve, thereby to close the means of cornmunication between saidpumping means and said rams, means to effect return of fluid to saidreservoir to return the fiuid pressure on said rams and means to againchange the positions of said valves upon the lowering of said rams.

ROBERT E. SHAPPELL.

